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Vivint Smart Home Arena
EnergySolutions Arena (originally Delta Center) is an indoor arena, in Salt Lake City, Utah, owned by Jazz Basketball Investors, Inc., the estate of Larry H. Miller. The arena seats 19,911 for basketball, has 56 luxury suites, and 668 club seats. Opened in 1991, the arena was known as the Delta Center, until EnergySolutions purchased the naming rights, after Delta Air Lines declined to renew their 15 year contact, effective November 20, 2006. The arena is the home of the NBA's Utah Jazz and resuming in 2011, the AFL's Utah Blaze.http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/sports/51113519-77/arena-blaze-energysolutions-lake.html.csp The arena was also home to the figure skating and short track speed skating competitions of the 2002 Winter Olympics (during the Olympics, the arena was referred to as the Salt Lake Ice Center). History The arena was originally imagined as 20,000-seat home for the Utah Jazz and Salt Lake Golden Eagles to replace the since-demolished Salt Palace arena, which had 12,616 seats. Under the leadership and private financing of Utah businessman Larry H. Miller, ground was broken on May 22, 1990, and it was completed on October 4, 1991 in time for late-October basketball games, at a cost of $93 million. The first game played in the arena was a Golden Eagles match against the Peoria Rivermen on October 16, 1991, which the home team lost 4-2. The Eagles had also played the inaugural game in the Salt Palace when it opened on October 10, 1969. The Eagles, which were purchased by Miller in 1990, lost nearly a million dollars annually and would not long play in the Delta Center. The first basketball game played in the arena was a Jazz pre-season loss against Patrick Ewing and the New York Knicks, 101–95. In addition to sports, the arena was intended to host large music concerts. On October 24, 1991, Oingo Boingo became the first headlining act to rock the Delta Center. The 1993-95 Western Athletic Conference men's basketball tournaments were held at the facility, as was the 1993 NBA All-Star Game. The Delta Center also hosted games of the 1997 and 1998 NBA Finals between the Jazz and Chicago Bulls. The arena's roof was damaged by severe winds associated with the Salt Lake City Tornado of August 11, 1999, costing $3,757,000 to repair. The facility played host to the 1999 US Figure Skating Championships. The arena was also home to the figure skating and short track speed skating competitions of the 2002 Winter Olympics.2002 Winter Olympics official report. Volume 1. pp. 93-4. In addition to the Utah Jazz and Blaze, the arena has also been the home of the WNBA's Utah Starzz from 1997 to 2002, the Salt Lake Golden Eagles from 1991 to 1994, and the Utah Grizzlies from 1995 to 1997, both of the International Hockey League. Notably, on June 8, 1996, the Delta Center hosted the largest crowd in the history of American minor league hockey: 17,381 fans attended Game 4 of the 1996 Turner Cup Finals"Orlando Ousted in OT" (Orlando Sentinel). The Grizzlies won 3-2 in overtime, completing a four-game sweep of the Orlando Solar Bears and earning the IHL championship in their first season in Utah. In 2002, the arena upgraded its super system with ribbon display technology and auxiliary scoreboards from Brookings, South Dakota-based Daktronics. The movie Legally Blonde 2 was partially filmed in the arena. Dan Roberts serves as the official EnergySolutions Arena public address voice for the Jazz. He has been the Jazz's home game announcer since before the arena was built. The EnergySolutions Arena is well known for being one of the hardest places to play for visiting teams in the NBA. According to an NBA Players Poll taken by Sports Illustrated on February 11, 2008, the ESA is considered "the most intimidating arena in the NBA" with 20% of the vote made up of 240 current NBA players. Many commentators referred to the arena as the "Decibel Center", a play on the name "Delta Center". During Game 5 of the 1997 NBA Finals, a decibel meter installed at floor level had readings of over 110 decibels, close to the noise generated by a jet takeoff. Also, during the 1997 NBA Finals, Hannah Storm of NBC called the then-named Delta Center "one of the loudest places in sports"http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1vWHDxG0YLk EnergySolutions Arena was the site of the West regional semifinals ("Sweet Sixteen") and championship ("Elite Eight") in the 2010 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament. Renaming The first renaming of the arena happened during the Salt Lake City Olympics, due to IOC policies about having corporate sponsorship for venue. The arena was renamed the Salt Lake Ice Center during the games. After Delta Air Lines declined to renew their 15-year naming rights contract, which expired on September 30, 2006, the stadium's owner, Larry H. Miller, opted to sell naming rights to EnergySolutions, a low-level nuclear waste disposal company headquartered in Salt Lake City. ; see also The new name was unveiled November 20, prior to the Jazz home game against the Toronto Raptors. Two stickers were placed on the court, covering up the arena's old name with the new one. The temporary logos were replaced with official logos on the court sometime in December. Initial fan reactions to the new name were predominantly negative. Early nicknames for the arena included "the Dump", a jab at EnergySolutions' radioactive and hazardous waste disposal operations. Other suggestions included the Glow Dome, Radium Stadium, the Isotope, ChernoBowl, JazzMat (short for Jazzardous Materials), the Big Bang, the Tox Box, the Power House, the Hot Spot, Plutonium Palace, the Fallout Shelter, the Melta Center, and Energy Pollutions Arena. John Stockton and Karl Malone statues Outside the arena are statues of two players regarded as among the greatest in the history of the Jazz. The John Stockton statue was unveiled on March 30, 2005. The Karl Malone statue was unveiled on March 23, 2006. The Jazz played games on each of those nights but lost both games. Larry H. Miller Court On April 15, 2010, over a year after the death of Jazz owner Larry H. Miller, the Jazz basketball court was named in his honor. The official name is Larry H. Miller Court at EnergySolutions Arena. Notable events Sports *1993 NBA All-Star Game *1993 US Gymnastics Championships *Site of and 1998 NBA Finals, most notably Game 5 in the 1997 series, when Michael Jordan scored 38 points, including the game-winning 3-pointer, despite suffering from a stomach ailment. It was also here where Jordan made his final shot as a Chicago Bull controversial game-winning basket (Most Jazz fan's say Jordan pushed off Bryon Russell before the shot), to help the Bulls clinch the 1998 series in Game 6. Many conspiracy theories have came out on the officials connection with the Italian Mob. *1999 US Figure Skating Championships *PBR Bud Light Cup event in 1999 and 2000 *The figure skating and short track speed skating competitions were held there during the 2002 Winter Olympics. *The Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight rounds of the 2010 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament Concerts *Queensrÿche - December 5, 1991 and May 10, 1995 *Metallica - February 10 and June 4, 1992, with Metal Church, January 2, 1997 and November 3, 2008, with Down and The Sword *Bryan Adams - May 6, 1992 *Rush - May 29, 1992, with Primus, May 20, 1997 and August 23, 2002 *The Cure - July 7, 1992, with The Cranes and August 8, 1996 *Def Leppard - September 11, 1992 and November 8, 2005, with Bryan Adams *KISS - December 8, 1992 and September 5, 1996 *Guns N' Roses - April 7, 1993 *Peter Gabriel - July 26, 1993 *Aerosmith - August 10, 1993, April 18, 1998, May 17, 1999, January 7, 2002, with Fuel and October 22, 2003, with KISS and Saliva *Depeche Mode - November 4, 1993 and December 1, 1998, with Stabbing Westward *INXS - April 15, 1994 and June 7, 2006 *Janet Jackson - April 26–27, 1994 and October 12, 2001 *Celine Dion - June 11, 1994, with Michael Bolton and February 22, 2009 *Phil Collins - July 28, 1994 *The Eagles - January 14, 1995 *The Grateful Dead - February 19–21, 1995 *R.E.M. - May 23, 1995, with Sonic Youth *Live - August 21, 1995, with PJ Harvey and Veruca Salt *Elton John - September 18, 1995 and August 11, 1998 *Van Halen - September 19, 1995 and August 3, 2004, with Shinedown *Page & Plant - October 10, 1995 *Pearl Jam - November 1-2, 1995, with The Fastbacks *Bush - May 3, 1996, with No Doubt and The Goo Goo Dolls *No Doubt - June 5, 1997 *Tina Turner - May 29, 1997, with Cyndi Lauper and May 15, 2000, with Lionel Richie *Fleetwood Mac - October 28, 1997, August 2, 2003 and June 3, 2009 *The Rolling Stones - February 4, 1999, with Bryan Adams and November 22, 2005 (They also gave a two song performance, via satellite, for the 2005 American Music Awards, with an introduction by Nicole Richie.) *'N Sync - April 28, 1999, with Britney Spears and B*Witched *Sarah Brightman - June 3, 1999, November 7, 2000 and March 6, 2004 *Bob Dylan - June 9, 1999, with Paul Simon *ZZ Top - November 19, 1999, with Lynyrd Skynyrd *Ricky Martin - November 27, 1999 *Cher - January 28, 2000, August 14, 2002 and January 31, 2005 *The Dixie Chicks - June 24, 2000 and July 9, 2003, with Michelle Branch *Tim McGraw and Faith Hill - July 28, 2000, August 4-5, 2006 and June 11, 2007 *Britney Spears - August 14, 2000, with A-Teens, November 13, 2001 and April 14, 2009, with The Pussycat Dolls *Billy Joel - January 29, 2001, with Elton John and February 19, 2010, with Elton John *Bon Jovi - April 28, 2001, April 5, 2003 and March 22, 2011 *Ben Harper & The Innocent Criminals - May 18, 2001, with Jack Johnson *Eric Clapton - August 1, 2001 and March 8, 2007, with The Robert Cray Band *The Backstreet Boys - October 5, 2001 and June 23, 2010 *U2 - November 9, 2001, with Garbage and No Doubt and December 17, 2005 *Creed - December 10, 2002 *Styx - May 28, 2003, with Journey and REO Speedwagon *American Idol Live! - August 23, 2003, July 14, 2004, August 26, 2005 and July 31, 2007 *Shania Twain - December 2, 2003 *Josh Groban - February 5, 2004 and August 28, 2007 (recorded and later released, as Awake Live) *Sammy Hagar & The Waboritas - March 24, 2004 *Kelly Clarkson - March 26, 2004, with Clay Aiken and October 10, 2008, with Reba McEntire and Melissa Peterman *Simon & Garfunkel - June 29, 2004, with The Everly Brothers *Hilary Duff - August 25, 2004 *Avril Lavigne - November 15, 2004 *Duran Duran - March 12, 2005 *Green Day - September 21, 2005, with Jimmy Eat World and August 16, 2009, with Franz Ferdinand *Nickelback - August 11, 2006, with Hoobastank and Chevelle and October 20, 2010, with Three Days Grace and Buckcherry *The Red Hot Chili Peppers - August 16, 2006 *The Blue Man Group - October 30, 2006 and February 2, 2008 *The Who - November 13, 2006, with The Pretenders *Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus - October 26–27, 2007, with The Jonas Brothers (one was filmed and released, as Disney Digital 3D, in select theaters, for a limited run worldwide and on DVD.) and September 29, 2009, with Metro Station *The Trans-Siberian Orchestra - November 27, 2007, November 25, 2009 (2 shows) and November 18, 2010 (2 shows) *Coldplay - November 22, 2008 *Neil Diamond - December 19, 2008 *Lil Wayne - March 31, 2009, with Gorilla Zoe and Young Money *Taylor Swift - May 26, 2009 *Il Divo - June 5, 2009 *Tool - July 19, 2009 *Keith Urban - September 9, 2009, with Little Big Town *Jason Aldean - March 19, 2010 *James Taylor and Carole King - July 15, 2010 *The Judds - December 9, 2010, with The Palmetto State Quartet *Linkin Park - February 25, 2011, with The Prodigy *Lady Gaga - March 19, 2011, with The Scissor Sisters *Katy Perry - July 25, 2011, with Robyn and DJ Skeet Skeet References External links *Official site Category:NBA Arenas